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User blog:Daniel.whyte.568/The Traitor
The man trapsed through the desert; his slight frame trapped and distorted by the lofty Hateful Sun. He murmured a prayer of the Truth, a plea for respite he recalled from the lips of a prince. The buzz of fat insects was his fanfare into the oasis. A tall guard with orcish tusks halted his advance. The man produced a handful of machined silver chits to be squinted over. 'Hail to the Conqueror' she smirked, waving the man through. The man flinched slightly, then dropped the remaining chits in the sand. It was Morsday at the oasis, he guessed, and the cacophony of trade and the press of bodies made the bazaar hot and bewildering. The man stepped through it unseen, his one eye searching hungrily. He saw Vicyrk at the edge of the bazaar, haggling over reagents. This was his last hope. He rushed forward and called out, his voice carrying supernaturally across the din of the market. Vicyrk spotted the man and bolted in an alley. The man launched himself after the mage, nimbly moving over stalls and above the alley. Vicyrk spun and launched a bolt of arcing electricity towards the man, who moved with uncanny grace, leaping over the bolt and landing with a roll behind Vicyrk. 'Wait!' called the man 'I'm not here for your life!'. The mage pulled the shadows from about the alley and congealed them about himself as he ran. Thinking quickly, he ducked into a building. His spell filled the rooms with darkness as he slipped within, moving carefully to avoid making any noise. He pulled a large gem pane from his belt pouch and sighted through it. The man was standing just outside the congealed shadow. He called within 'Vicyrk, I just need to know about your research. I know about the Annulment of Vigil and Rod of True Censure. I must know the location of the last piece. I will leave you in peace if you can give me what I ask'. Two guards approached from the barracks and called out to the man, who responded in passable Sirithi. 'Please don't do this.' He murmured in common as the guards drew closer. The guards closed to grab the man and Vicyrk gasped as two poisoned stilettos made short work of them. 'I know you!' called Vicyrk through the dark 'You're the Traitor'. 'Indeed' replied the man. He reached up and pulled away his eyepatch. A baleful, golden eye locked onto the mage within his shadow. 'And your shade means nothing'. Vicyrk dropped to his knees, dismissing his spell as an afterthought. 'The Conqueror's Eye, how did you-' 'A deal was struck, remember? I was promised power to save my city. All the Conqueror's plans never accounted for his death atop the world. So our pact gave me what I was owed.' The man sat heavily into a basket chair. 'And took what was wagered.' He kicked a chair over to the mage and gestured. Vicyrk sat, unable to meet the eye of his former master. 'You want to know about my research?' The man nodded and glanced outside. A few people had spotted the fallen guards and the alarm was being raised. 'I have about a minute.' 'Are they-' 'Paralysed. Boolig venom.' 'I see.' The mage hesitated. 'You recall nothing? No remnant of what you did or learned? Like the rest, you cannot recall my name?' Vicyrk closed his mouth and nodded. 'Like the rest then.' The man stood. 'There is something though!' Vicyrk blurted, some vestige of honour compelling him to speak. 'A bounty hunter collected me from the ruins of the tower. He thought he might get lucky.' Vicyrk shrugged. 'I stood in a circle of truth and revealed that truly, I knew nothing. I've spent the last few months trying to recover my memory.' Several voices called out nearby. 'Quickly, quickly. And the bounty hunter?' 'Jailed. Drunk and disorderly. Though they're really in there for flirting with the guard captain's son.' The man smiled. 'In that case.' He stepped out of the house. 'Perhaps I should answer for my crimes.' Vicyrk stepped forward. 'Take me with you!' The man looked over his shoulder to the mage. 'I...I want to remember what I did, what I was part of for that year of my life.' The man turned and squared up to the mage. 'Your master was a monster. Are you sure you want to remember? You have an opportunity for a second chance here. You could be happy.' For the first time Vicyrk met the Traitor's mismatched eyes. 'I need to know if I deserve it.' The Traitor was taken aback for a moment before he raised his arms in surrender to the guards that surrounded them. 'So do I.' Category:Blog posts